Police rescue abducted ‘Tiktoker’

Property dealer was reported missing a month ago

RAWALPINDI:

The Rawalpindi police said on Friday that it had recovered a man who was abducted from a private housing society almost a month ago with the kidnappers demanding Rs250 million for his release. It also arrested four people, with a source within the police department saying that the mastermind of the kidnapping had escaped.

The police action was based on the complaint of the kidnapped man’s spouse, who reported it to the Rawat police on November 17. The complaint stated that her husband Muhammad Ismail was a property dealer who had been abducted a day earlier from Bahria Town.

The abductee’s vehicle was found in the housing society with the police registering a case of kidnapping. Meanwhile, the family received a ransom call, and they said the hostages had demanded Rs250 million.

In a video uploaded on social media platform TikTok after his rescue, Ismail thanked the Punjab police for bringing him back safe.

He said that his family had paid Rs150 million to the abductors in Kohat and were trying to get the remaining money together when the rescue happened. He had bandages on his wrist, suggesting that his hands been tied.

The police handout did not mention the amount paid to the kidnappers, although it mentioned that the family had paid part of the ransom without informing the police.

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The police said that it had arrested four individuals and was conducting raids to find the mastermind, Payoo Deen Khan, who the police said had managed to go into hiding.

It did not reveal whether the ransom amount was recovered from the accused. It also did not mention where the victim was rescued from.

In his video, Ismail revealed that his family had paid Rs150 million and urged the Punjab police to recover the amount.

He also suggested that other developers and businesspeople were potential targets if the remaining members of the ‘kidnapping’ gang were not arrested and prosecuted.

Police said they had the suspects on remand and were seeking more information regarding the accused and the main suspects.

Ismail’s TikTok account says he the chief executive officer of a real estate company and he often uploads videos on property related issues, with a following of a little than half a million, and lifetime likes of a little over 10 million.

Published in The Express Tribune, December 16^th, 2023.